iA Writer - AI Tools Nav

What it is for

iA Writer is a Focus Mode plain-text desk: you dim the previous sentence, keep the caret on the line you are writing, and Mac is US$49.99 once. Use it when the job is a sentence you start at a public $, not when you need Obsidian’s $0 Bases table + Sync $4.

Soft-note: Mac US$49.99 one-time; iPhone/iPad US$29.99 one-time (printed on ia.net/writer/buy); free trial; major updates may cost. Distinct from Obsidian, Craft, and Logseq.

What makes it unique: the cover is iA’s official Focus Mode (greyed first paragraph, live sentence “To write well, you need to be fully awake…”, blue caret) from static.ia.net/writer/landing/iA-Writer-in-Focus-Mode-slide.png — not a wordmark. The blue caret itself is ops of Focus Mode.

Key features

Focus Mode — one sentence bright, the rest dim (cover still; product). One desk. Cover caret sits here.
Plain-text page — no chrome on the cover (cover). A page, not a $49.99 meter.
Syntax control — Markdown you can preview (product). A syntax, not Purchase.
Library — files on disk / iCloud (product; buy). A library, not Enterprise.
Export — preview and share (product). An export, not SSO.
Multi-device licenses — separate Mac vs iPhone/iPad SKUs (buy). A license, not a trial tile.

Download / Buy are CTAs (not desks). US$49.99 / US$29.99 stay in Pricing. There is no AI extra to drop.

Who it's for

Best fit: writers who will run the free trial while they finish a first Focus Mode page — then Mac at US$49.99 (and iPhone/iPad US$29.99 if they want that SKU), not Obsidian Sync $4 first unless they want a graph vault, and not if they need a PKM backlink graph (iA Writer is a focused page, not a wiki).

Pricing

Verified 2026-10-23 (Asia/Shanghai) from ia.net/writer/buy (Mac $49.99; iPhone & iPad $29.99; free trial; 20% education; 30-day refund when bought direct) plus ia.net/writer. Soft-note: we cite the printed $49.99 / $29.99, not a rounded $49 / $29. Major updates may cost extra.

Mac — US$49.99 one-time.
iPhone / iPad — US$29.99 one-time (separate SKU).
Trial — free trial on the buy page. Do not invent a trial-day count the page does not print.
Education — 20% (printed).
Refund — 30 days when bought from iA (printed).
Windows / Android SKUs exist on the buy page as their own licenses — cite the printed Mac / iOS $ first.

Limitations / costs

Major updates may cost. The buy page says future major versions can be paid. Do not invent the next-major $.
Not a PKM graph. For Bases / backlinks see Obsidian.
Separate device SKUs. Mac US$49.99 does not include the US$29.99 iPhone/iPad license.
The product is not OSS. We omit a GitHub CTA rather than invent a product repo.

Alternatives

Obsidian — a local Bases table when you want the app at $0 / Sync $4, not Focus Mode prose.
Craft — a hosted All Docs home when you want Starter $0 / Plus $8, not a dimmed sentence.
Logseq — a local outliner + page graph when you want Free forever $0, not a plain-text caret.

Official tutorial

We searched @InformationArchitects (200 — no product how-to we could oEmbed), @iA (Austria, not this app), @iAinc (unrelated), @iawriter (404), and @iAWriter (404). ia.net/writer has no official how-to we could oEmbed. No official product channel to embed. Written path: ia.net/writer plus buy.

Website

https://ia.net/writer

Source

Catalog row curated for AI Tools Nav. Cover is iA’s official Focus Mode still (dimmed first paragraph + live sentence + blue caret) from static.ia.net/writer/landing/iA-Writer-in-Focus-Mode-slide.png. Dollars checked on ia.net/writer/buy (Mac US$49.99; iPhone/iPad US$29.99; free trial; 20% edu; 30-day direct refund). No invented GitHub. No official YouTube.

Last verified

2026-10-23 (Asia/Shanghai) editorial check.